Phoenix residents have been given last minute reprieve from a planned 24-hours water shutdown by eThekwini after the municipality announced that they will no longer be going ahead with cutting-off supply to the township in the north of Durban on Tuesday, 20 February.
The eThekwini Municipality had planned a shutdown of the Northern Aqueduct pipeline, which carries water from Durban Heights Treatment Works to areas in the north, to install the last few air valves on the pipeline on Tuesday, 20 February, from 5pm until Wednesday evening.
However, on Monday morning, eThekwini issued a statement stating that the planned shutdown had been postponed until further notice. EThekwini said that this comes after extensive assessments were conducted by the city’s water and sanitation technical teams.
The announcement follows the visit of Water and Sanitation Minister, Senzo Mchunu, to Phoenix and Verulam communities which have been majorly affected by the water crisis, on Friday, 16 February. The aim of the visit was to assess the measures put in place to restore and ensure uninterrupted water supply in the adversely affected areas.
Mchunu had previously made an undertaking to resolve the severe water challenges faced by Phoenix and Verulam residents during community engagements, earlier this month.
Speaking to the Phoenix Tabloid, Minister Senzo Mchunu, said: “We are serious at work in resolving the recent problems of water supply in eThekwini, which has affected many areas with the communities of Phoenix and Verulam being most affected.
“We have engaged with both communities and have come back after we made an undertaking for 15 February, that residents will be getting water. Indeed we met our deadline as water did reach the Phoenix and Verulam areas, however, as residents were beginning to get water, we had an issue of vandalism in one of the substations and pumping came to a halt. This was immediately attended to and as levels were building up in the reservoirs, we experienced load shedding on Friday morning.”
Mchunu conducted an oversight at the Phoenix 1 Reservoir and Mountview Reservoir. He said: “During my visit at both the sites, I could see that water was being received, however, we needed to build-up on water levels. During the shutdown, technical teams will be replacing the last six valves on the aqueduct which will then enable us to pump much bigger volumes of water in the pipes. Once these are full, residents in the north of eThekwini will be able to get enough water flow into their taps, without intermittent supply of water.”
Head of Water and Sanitation in eThekwini Metro, Ednick Msweli, said that pressure valves had to be replaced throughout the Northern Aqueduct pipeline after infrastructure damages caused by the recent heavy rains.
“We had to replace about 72 air valves and we are down to six of the major ones that will be replaced during the shutdown process. The replacement of these air valves is vital as if there is air in the pipeline, the airlock becomes a barrier for the water to flow. With this being said, its not that water is not available from uMngeni-uThukela Water as we have conducted various tests, including pushing all the water from the plant towards Phoenix – the water still could not arrive which tells us that there were restrictions in the aqueduct coming from air which is trapped in the pipelines,” said Msweli.
He said that about 75% of the areas that were affected, including uMhlanga and Durban North, have recovered following the replacement of the air valves. The areas that will be affected during the shutdown under Phoenix 1 Reservoir include Southgate, Clayfield, Stonebridge, Broadlands, Mount Edgecombe Estate and Mount Edgecombe Hospital. The areas under Phoenix 2 Reservoir are Sunford, Hannaford, Phoenix Highway, Longcroft, Longbury, Plaza, Southbury, Eastbury, Groove End, Sastri Park, Caneside, Canehaven, Woodview, and Grove end area.
Phoenix Industrial Park, Whetfern, Whetstone, Triplen Circle, Westham, Trenance Manor, Ghandi Settlement, Lenham, Fernham, Brookdale Whetstone, Bhambayi, Amoati, Woodview, Cornubia, Ottawa, Palmview, Trenance Park, Simunye Avenue, Corobrick Industrial Area, Eleka Road, Mount Moriah Drive, Zwela Street, Mela street, Zinza Place, Rainbow Street, Umkhutu Place will be affected under Phoenix 3 to 6 Reservoirs.
EThekwini Municipality will communicate the new shutdown date soon. For more information regarding water supply, the public can download eThekwini Municipality’s Mobile App to log faults or send a WhatsApp to 073 148 3477. Alternatively, call the toll-free number on 080 311 1111 or email: Eservices@durban.gov.za
